Carbon PAC: A look at Trent Lott’s new lobbying efforts

Some people just have a knack for grabbing headlines; especially when you haven’t heard their name for about a decade!

Former U.S. Senator Trent Lott has attracted a lot of attention with his latest venture, joining big oil corporations, environmental groups, and prominent conservative strategists James Baker and George Shultz in calling for a plan to mitigate the effects of global warming. In a June editorial from the Wall Street Journal, Lott introduced his new PAC entitled Americans for Carbon Dividends, or AFCD (www.afcd.org). The goal of his PAC is to promote legislation that will not only help to limit carbon emissions and promote sustainable energy development, but will also be pro-business by stimulating innovation and economic growth.

The concept of carbon pricing is not a new one, as other groups have been working on this type of solution for years. In fact, we already have 84 members of Congress signed on to the Climate Solutions Caucus, a bipartisan group from the U.S. House of Representatives led by Carlos Curbelo R-FL, and they are calling for a very similar plan. But Mr. Lott’s plan does bring some new ideas to the table.

For starters, the AFCD boasts generous financial backing from the corporate energy sector, including oil powerhouses ExxonMobil, BP and Shell, as well as solar producers and other large corporations. This corporate money allows for high-profile lobbyists, as well as the initial seed money for the dividend payments. These industry groups urged President Trump to not pull out of the Paris Climate Accord, and now they are putting their money where their mouth is.

Another feature of this new PAC is the support they have from young conservatives, including 23 college Republican clubs across the country. Many of the worst consequences of climate change will arise gradually over the coming decades, and today’s young people will be the ones that will need to adapt. As a result, precocious young leaders are emerging ahead of their time in this movement to accept the scientific consensus, and develop a less carbon-intensive economy.

Carbon pricing is fast becoming one of the most bipartisan topics, not only for Congress but among their constituents nationwide. And it is within this voting public that a lot of true power lies! Join us in urging Senators Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith, and Representative Steve Palazzo, to heed the advice of their predecessor. In Mr. Lott’s own words, “the tide is turning on the realization that something needs to be done”. And that something is to follow the lead of the oil corporations and environmental groups, military leaders and economists, conservatives and progressives alike, and pass legislation for carbon pricing!

Chris Werle is leader of Hattiesburg’s chapter of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby, and can be reached at Hattiesburg@citizensclimatelobby.org